The proposed research seeks to isolate psychosocial factors which promote successful adaptation to collective stress among elderly members of three ethnic groups: Blacks, Whites and American Indians. The focus is upon natural disaster (tornadoes) as a source of collective stress, with particular attention to adaptive behavior in the warning phase. The primary outcomes of the study involve: (1) identification and classification of adaptive behaviors among minority elderly, and (2) the development of a comprehensive model to explain the responses of minority elderly to hazard warnings. Consideration is given the role of informal social networks (kin and community contacts) in the formal warning process and how minority elderly might have diminished access to such networks or may be involved in fundamentally different types of informal networks. Attention is also given to examining: (1) the consequences of constraints on response capability placed on households with varying levels of participation of elderly persons; (2) ethnic and elderly variations in situational definition of threat; and (3) variations among ethnic elderly regarding perceptions of what constitutes adaptive behavior when faced with disaster. The research involves cross-sectional surveys of tornado victims in six communities. Interviews will be conducted with victims approximately six to nine months after disaster impact.